Keith soon felt the head laid on his shoulder, the black and white hair a lot closer to his face that it tickled his cheeks. He would have looked at the situation with humor, if he wasn't feeling so down. He knew him for merely two days, but already, he felt like he latched onto him. Maybe it was his need for company, maybe he was just simply charmed by this man who, without even knowing it, is helping him a lot more than he thinks he is.
He sighed, his eyes turning slightly glassy as he wrapped an arm around his shoulder, holding him closer to silently soothe him. He could feel warmth and a foreign skin against his body that felt like eating a favorite meal after years of having not tasted it. He missed this. Having someone to speak with, connect with. Make him feel human, like he still lived.
And if Shiro left? Well, he'll go back to being the way he was. Or maybe he'll go somewhere else, somewhere far away from oceans and beaches and shells. But Shiro was here, he reminded himself, still here and still holding him. Keith promised himself nothing would tear that away, even if death seemed to be looming over them like a guardian angel. He will always keep Shiro here, alive and breathing. As many times as it takes. Only he wished he could tell him those words.
But then he heard Shiro's words fill his mind, and he swallowed, letting his soothing voice calm his shot nerves. He wished he had that same power, and as acknowledgement to his words, the human gently began to stroke his hair. He tried again - harder this time - to speak telepathically, like he had that sort of ability, until a sentence willed itself through in the spur of the moment. He wasn't sure if it even reached the merman's mind. Only his reaction would tell. When it came to Keith, his eyes widened and he reeled back, looking in surprise at the merman.
"And I'll be here to take care of you, as many times as it takes."